Get greener ... even in a tiny apartment

There are a lot of things you can’t do when you live in an apartment: remodel the kitchen, evict the noisy neighbors. But you can live green – even in a tiny, rented space.

Cassaundra Baber

There are a lot of things you can’t do when you live in an apartment: remodel the kitchen, evict the noisy neighbors. But you can live green – even in a tiny, rented space.

From indoor composting to low-carbon dieting, we’ve got the tips to make you an apartment-dwelling eco-superhero.

Container gardening

Living greener means being responsible for your own food supply. You don’t have to live on a farm or have a garden to do that. To grow veggies and herbs, all you’ll need is soil, some containers and a sunny spot outside. Here’s a step-by-step guide for creating a container garden, from Holly Wise, consumer horticulture extension educator at the Cornell Cooperative Extension.

What you’ll need:

Any type of container. Wise suggests the circular containers commonly used to put ice and drinks in for parties. Tipnut.com suggests using things such as an old child’s wagon, roasting pans, watering cans, even an old boot. Visit http://tipnut.com/creative-container-gardening-tips-ideas/ for more ideas.

Styrofoam peanuts
Soil (specifically for vegetables)
Soil moist gels (“Soil moist gels are great; so you don’t have to water them as much and don’t have to worry if you’re going away,” Wise said. Find them in any gardening center; follow directions on package.)
Trellises (for “tidier” growing)
Seeds for whatever kind of vegetables you wish to grow. Wise grows lettuce, cucumbers, tomatoes, radishes, small carrots in her container gardens.

What to do:

1. Make holes in the bottom of your containers for drainage.

2. Line the bottom of your containers about halfway with Styrofoam peanuts.

“Packing peanuts aid in drainage and makes containers lighter and easier to move around,” Wise said. If you’re using smaller containers, you can use coffee filters instead of Styrofoam and add 1-2 inches of soil.

3. Add soil.

4. Plant seeds.

Things to consider:

For best results begin most planting in May or June to avoid frost, but lettuces and cucumbers can begin being planted now, Wise said.

Food footprint

You can’t grow all your food, so here’s how to make the smallest carbon footprint possible with your food choices.

“This is about knowing how your food choices might affect the environment,” said Patrick Raynard, general manager for Bon Appetit Management Company.

Bon Appetit seeks to lessen its carbon footprint, Raynard said, by serving fresh, locally produced food as well as antibiotic-free meats and milk when possible.

Here’s what Raynard suggests:

Pay attention to labels, especially on produce. Look for labels from Mexico, Canada and the United States. Food from those countries is less likely to have been air-freighted and generally tastes better because it’s fresher.

If you don’t see a label on your produce, ask.

Buy from farmers’ markets whenever possible. Buying local completely cuts out the middle man – meaning the transportation needed to get your food from where it’s from to you, reducing the carbon footprint.

Eat seasonally. Choose foods that you know are in season.

“Maybe in February, you don’t have nectarines or grapes,” Raynard said. “It’s hard to do where we live, but it can be done.”

One way to do that is subscribing to local sustainable farms that share produce. For a fee, you’ll receive a supply of freshly picked vegetables during growing season. Visit localharvest.org to find a close-by farm that offers this service.

-- Want to know what kind of footprint your meals are making?

Check out http://www.eatlowcarbon.org/Carbon-Calculator.html.

Smart waste

Now you’re eating right, but you’ll still need to throw out the scraps. Composting is not a dirty word, even for apartment dwellers; follow these tips and even your garbage will be greener.

Get out: If you’re lucky enough to have a backyard or patch of lawn, you can easily create your own composting pile. According to the Oneida-Herkimer Solid Waste Authority, all you need is a 3-foot by 3-foot by 3-foot pile of dirt. Throw your waste, specifically vegetable scraps, tea bags, green waste, grass clippings, egg shells and fruit rinds under the pile and turn frequently. It’ll be worm fodder before you know it.

A little help from some wiggly friends: If worms make you squeamish, this isn’t the process for you, but composting inside with worms is relatively simple, odorless and super for the environment.

Here’s the easiest, most cost effective way we found: You’ll need a large bin, newspaper, soil, red worms and a drill. Drill holes on the top and the upper sides of the bin, lay a blanket of damp newspaper strips on the bottom of the bin and add a handful of dirt. Then, send your worms a wiggling – you’ll need about a pound per ½ pound of waste. For what to do when the waste breaks down and for more details on worm composting, visit http://whatcom.wsu.edu/ag/compost/easywormbin.htm.

Inside and wormless: There are numerous composting kits you can purchase online, but this was the only one we could find that didn’t require worms, and was made specifically for small spaces: The All Food Recycling Compost Kit with Bokashi. It claims to quickly and without odor convert waste into a high-grade soil conditioner through the use of microbes called ‘Bokashi’ – a Japanese word meaning “fermented organic matter.” The bloggers we came across thought the kit was a good alternative to worm composting, but weren’t happy with having to purchase the Bokashi to do their composting, as well as still having to dispose of some of the leftover waste. Cost: $75. Visit www.gaiam.com for information and/or to order.